


Backlash

by Bishie Huntress (Artemystic)



Series: 2016 NaNo Prompts [4]
Category: Fullmetal Alchemist - All Media Types
Genre: Gen, Not sure how the prompt played into this, Please don't ask how my mind works XD, Probably the backlash comes the following morning, Rat?, Really Cold Weather, Snow, Unexpected Encounters of the Warm and Scaly Kind, mwahahahaha, snuggles, wet clothes
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-21
Updated: 2019-07-21
Packaged: 2020-07-09 22:47:47
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,486
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19895605
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Artemystic/pseuds/Bishie%20Huntress
Summary: In which Ed is a dragon, Roy is a foolish (read: desperate) traveler, and the winter wind is fierce.





	Backlash

* * *

The wind howled, biting and tearing its way through Roy’s many layers. He pulled his hat down lower and his scarf up higher, and tucked his hands into his armpits as he struggled to shift numb feet forward through the steadily deepening snow.

A gust of wind wormed its way down Roy’s neck, despite five scarves, two sweaters, his coat, and three hoods, and he shivered violently. If he didn’t find some way out of this, he would freeze to death. Surely there was some kind of shelter nearby! He looked around, but the wind kicked up so much snow that it was nearly impossible to see two steps in front of him.

In fact, it was purely by accident that he stumbled on his salvation. Or his doom. It was kind of hard to say. He took a step, but his foot didn’t meet the ground. With the numbness, he had no way of knowing there was nothing beneath him until he started falling forward, and by then, it was far too late to catch himself. All he could do was tuck his head under his arms and hope to high heaven someone would find his body, if spring ever came to this godforsaken land.

Roy didn’t fall very far before he hit a slope and tumbled down its sides, finally coming to rest on a rocky surface. A shower of snow followed and covered him. For a moment, roy just lay in silence, waiting for something direr to happen. When nothing did, he finally uncovered his head and carefully looked around. Snow fell from his hood into his face, and he spent a few moments sputtering and shivering before he could get most of the snow off. Once that was done, he took another proper look around.

Roy was rather surprised he could see at all. By all rights, it should be as dark as midnight in a storm. Instead, a soft golden glow cast a shine on the stone floor—flatter than seemed quite natural—and walls that stretched fifty or so feet overhead. He marked the location where he’d fallen through, which was already being covered by snow blown across the small opening. 

Finally, he turned around to look at the slope he’d rolled down. It was possible he’d be able to climb it to get back out in the morning—

Nope, climbing that slope was going to be pretty impossible, Roy decided with a slightly hysterical internal laugh. He was pretty much a walking dead man at this point. The slope he’d rolled down, the slope that had broken his fall and saved his life, was a looming golden dragon. A dragon! Did those even actually exist?! It was possible Roy had fallen down in the snow and was dreaming as his death inched in upon him. This could be some kind of hypothermia-induced illusion. 

A dragon.

A dragon who, despite Roy’s roll down his scaled side, was fast asleep. Soft rumbles punctuated each exhale, and Roy suddenly realized just how warm this cave was. He fumbled with his mittens until he managed to pull one off and nearly cried at the burn in his fingers as the warm air hit him. Quickly, or as quickly as he could manage with his cold-deadened limbs, Roy removed the rest of his winter garments and reveled in the heat.

A sudden blast of wind made him shiver, and Roy belatedly realized there was a cave mouth on the other side of the dragon, blocked by his large body. He looked at his gear, not relishing the thought of climbing back into it. Now that it had thawed somewhat, it was soaking wet. That couldn’t be healthy. He turned and looked consideringly at the dragon.

One way or another, Roy was dead. If he made it out of the cave and into the snow, he would freeze faster than a popsicle. If he stayed, the dragon would roast him. Roy decided a warm death sounded more agreeable. And since he was going to die anyway, he might as well be as comfortable as possible, right?

He took the necessary moments to lay out his gear in a way that would allow it to dry most effectively. It wasn’t that he thought he would have any more use for it, but if Riza found out he’d failed to care for his belongings the way she’d drilled into him, she’d bring him back from the dead just so she could shoot him again. Roy shuddered, and he didn’t think it was because of the cold air outside.

Finished with that, he turned and looked at the dragon again. It really was a beautiful creature, he decided. Its scales shone, giving off their own faint light, and a long tail was curled around the side nearest him. Powerful legs were tucked underneath the long body, and wings curved gracefully against its back.

Roy couldn’t see the face. It was toward the front of the cave, presumably to allow the hot air it expelled to vent, thereby avoiding overheating. But the heat put off from the beast itself was magnificent, wonderful, and Roy felt himself drawn to it.

He stepped forward, and again, until he was near enough to touch the dragon. He reached out, then paused as he had second thoughts. Was he really this suicidal? Then he shrugged. In for a grain, in for a bushel, as Havoc was fond of saying. His hand touched the metallic scales.

So warm! It was like being right next to a fireplace, just the right amount of cozy without being uncomfortable. Roy’s favorite place was right next to his fireplace.

He really was only touching one scale. It was large enough to be half again as wide and long as his hand. He ran his fingers along the edge in amazement and hissed as he sliced a finger. He looked at his finger. The cut was so fine that it didn’t bleed right away, but Roy was grateful he hadn’t pressed any harder. It was sharp enough to take off his finger.

He stuck the finger in his mouth and sucked on it as he walked over to his pack and pulled open the top. Fortunately, the contents were dry. He’d paid for the best and was glad to see his money had been well spent. Pulling out a thick, woolen blanket, Roy walked back over to the dragon. Wrapping the blanket around himself, he sat down and snuggled right up against the back of the dragon’s foreleg. Here, there was a softer reptilian skin instead of scales, so Roy was less likely to be sliced and diced like a salad in his sleep. He shifted until he was comfortable, finally decided he was too exhausted to care anymore, and passed out.

* * *

Ed shifted in his sleep. Something was different, but he didn’t feel threatened, and it wasn’t uncomfortable enough to bring him back to full awareness. Still, he could tell that something was different in his cave, and it niggled at the back of his mind until he decided he wasn’t going to get anymore proper sleep until he figured out what it was.

Rousing, Ed sniffed at the air. There was definitely a different scent here, but it wasn’t the bear he’d eaten earlier. It smelled damp, though not quite in the way melted snow smelled, although that was present. He twisted his neck to get a good look at his cave, and something against his side shifted.

Ed’s first thought was, ‘ _ Rat!’ _ and he almost scrambled away from it before he realized it was a little too big. His head swung around until he could take a look at his side, and he froze in shock. A human! A pathetic little human was curled up against him. Belatedly, Ed noticed the damp clothing laid out on the floor, and the pack to one side.

So, a human had stumbled upon his cave and decided to cuddle a dragon, hmm? Ed almost laughed. This human had nerve. Ed thought about just waking him up and kicking him out of the cave, but the wind against his other side reminded him that throwing the human out into the storm was just as good as killing it himself.

He heaved a great sigh. While Al held no particular fondness for humans, he was against needless slaughter in general, and he’d no doubt find out about this. Ed sometimes swore his brother was some kind of seer.

Well, now that he knew what was different in his home, perhaps he’d be able to get some real rest. He shifted a little more onto his side and tucked his head against the leg the human seemed to like so much, the better to be able to keep an eye on it, and went back to sleep until a proper morning dawned.

* * *


End file.
